Where should we as Christians get our values?

By johnfg, on February 26th, 2017

In our local community, Belgrade, Montana, there’s a bit of a struggle going on concerning pornography. Of course, the struggle is much larger than this small city, but this is where I live, and this is where I can possibly make an impact. I want to point out something to my fellow-believers of the Old & New Testaments, more especially to the true followers of Jesus Christ as their Lord. If you’re part of that group, there should be no question in your mind about whether pornography is right or wrong.

The Lord tells us in His Law that we are not to look on another person’s nakedness. That nakedness is only for the person themselves, and the person of the opposite sex to whom they are married. Very severe punishments were to be meted out for looking on another’s nakedness.

Jesus stated in the New Testament, in the Sermon on the Mount:

“You have heard that it was said, `YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY’; but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell.”

Is there anyone who would say that they can look at pornography and not lust, not have sexual desire for the sexual object of the pornography? If so, I can assure you that you won’t be believed if you do maintain that. Better to be honest, confess our sin, and go through life blind, and maimed, than to be cast whole into hell for our adulterous eyeing of pornography.

Therefore, you and I, my fellow-believer, should be against pornography, because we believe the Bible, and we are obedient disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. If you’re fighting for someone’s right to view pornography, I hope that you don’t identify yourself as a Christian, or a believer in the God of the Bible. Because your stand is against both, in my understanding of the Bible, and the commands of Jesus. And it’s from the Word of God that the true follower of Jesus Christ gets their values.

The Lord’s Message Was Himself

Fundamentally, our Lord's message was Himself. He did not come merely to preach a Gospel; He himself is that Gospel. He did not come merely to give bread; He said, "I am the bread." He did not come merely to shed light; He said, "I am the light." He did not come merely to show the door; He said, "I am the door." He did not come merely to name a shepherd; He said, "I am the shepherd." He did not come merely to point the way; He said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life."
--J. Sidlow Baxter (1903-1999, Australian born pastor and theologian who authored as many as thirty books)

The Beginning of Coldness in the Heart

"Forsake not the assembling of yourselves together," is a most important exhortation.
Even if we should not derive any especial benefit, at the time, so far as we are
conscious, yet we may be kept from much harm. And very frequently the beginning
of coldness of heart is nourished by keeping away from the meetings of the saints.
-- George Muller

Freedom & Extinction

I came across this profound quote of President Ronald Reagan that is worth sharing:

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We did not pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free."

Thanksgiving – Thursday, November 24, 2011

Why should we here in the U.S.A. be thankful? "Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, for His mercy endures forever." And we are told in the Bible, "It is He that made us and not we ourselves. We are His people and the sheep of His pasture." Let's not allow ourselves to fall below the level of animals as did the people of God addressed in Isaiah 1: "The ox knows his owner, and the donkey its master's manger; but Israel does not know, my people do not consider." Take time to thank the Lord for all that He does. And if you have not yet received the gift of eternal life, you may do so by accepting it as a free gift paid for by the precious blood of Jesus Christ the Son of God. "As many as received Him, to them He gave the power to become sons of God"

What’s the Real Reason for U.N. or Nato Intervention?

Both the U.S.A. and others of the western "powers" along with the U.N., have stated that the reason for their resolution and their intervention in Libya was for humanitarian reasons. Really? Is there a greater premium on Libyan lives than elsewhere? What about at present in the Ivory Coast where over 1,000 have been found shot or hacked to death with machetes? What about the tragedies in the Sudan, in Rwanda, and in so many other countries? I don't claim to know what the real motive of the U.S.A. and these others is, but it certainly doesn't seem humanitarian to neglect such glaring atrocities as I've mentioned. At least as believer in Jesus, let us pray for all these places, their leaders, the people, and especially pray that the leaders of the free nations will truly help those who need their help.

Unconstitutional

The president and his attorney general decided, behind closed doors, that the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which was signed into law in 1996 by President Bill Clinton, was not constitutional. Therefore, they concluded that the federal government would no longer enforce it.
I have news for them. What the president did is what's unconstitutional, as it is a usurpation of the powers belonging to one of the other branches of government. It is the U.S. Supreme Court that has the authority to call a law, or define a right, as being constitutional or not. It's not the executive, or not the legislative branch of government that can decide this.
Clearly, our president needs to have this pointed out.